Flying-machine.



F4598 XE. 9899786 g i U. G. LEE & W. A. DARRAH. FLYING MACHINE.

APYLIGATIDN FILED FEB. 15,1910.

} 989,786. Patented Apr. 18, 1911.

2 SHEETS-SHEET l.

F Ulysses mnZfLee WL'lLL'zJm Austin Don-ah.

@Vvbmcoaeo: By W 2 5g {Eton-m1; I

0AM 35w U. G. LEE & W. A. DARRAH.

FLYING MACHINE.

APPLICATION TILED FBB.15, 1910.

- Patented Apr. 18, 1911.

2 SHEETS-SHEET 2.

n'nizrnn s'mrns PATENT orrion.

ULYSSES GRANT LEE AND WILLIAM AUSTIN DARRAl-I, OF BROOKLYN, NEW YORK.

FLYING-MACHINE.

Specification of Letters Patent.

ramme a r.,1s, ie11.

Kpplication filed February 15, 1910. Serial No. 544,148.

To all whom it may comer/i:

.lic it known that we, l nvsses GRANT LEE and Human AUs'rL-X'1).-\RR.\H, citizens of the United States of America, and both residingat 1164; Forty-fourth street, in the city of Brooklyn, county of Kings,and

State of New York, have invented certain,

, new and useful I1ll)l(W8lll6lllS in F lying- The objects of ourinvention are: 1st, to provide a supporting surface of such de; signthat it will'tend to return, automati=' cally, to the-normal position iftemporarily displaced; 2d, to provide additional means for maintaininglateral stability, or for regaining the same; and 3d, to provide meansfor directing the machine bothvertically and horizontally; andformaintaining such direction; and suchv other purposes as-are setforth.

' To accomplish these ends, our invention consists of certain novelfeatures which are.

shown in the accompanying drawings, described in the specification, andthendetinitely pointed out in the claims.

In the accompanying dra 'ings, Figure l is a perspective view of aflying machine embodying our invention in one form. Fig. 2 is a sideelevation showing the devices for directing the motion ofthe machine.Fig. 3 is aplen view showing the mechanism for operating the verticalrudder. Fig. q is asection on line a?; showing the auxiliary meansforregaining transverse equilibrium.

Our invention relates to those flying machines in which the weight issupported by the reactions resulting from the movement of one or moresurfaces through the air. the said surfaces being or" such shape andinclined at such. an angle that the air adjacent to said surfaces isaccelerated. in a downward direction. I

- Experience has shown that it is not difficult to lift a comparativelylarge weight by the reaction between the supporting surface and the air,but with all types of machines which have previously been devised, it isa very diificult matter to maintain etpiilibrium, requiring thevconstant attem tion of the operator.

It is the object :of our invent-ion to provide a supportingsurfacewhich, as "a re sult of its shape, will, tend to automaticallyregain its equilibrium if d i's'turbed, and

which will nothave its :eq'uilibrii'un disturbecLbychanges of therelative velocity of the machine and the air, 0r by changes ofdirection. To. best j obtain these ends it is preferable, though notabscflutely riecessary, that the means for directing the motion of themachine be constructed ashrein described. 4 .v a

Turning-nowto the" drawings, Fig. 1

shows in perspective-one type of surface having the features which wehave discov ered to be necessary to insure an automaticmaintenance ofequilibrium, a constant position for the center of upward pressure,

and the other advantages which we claimr Our surface is built on akeeh'l, to which the ribs 2, are rigidly fastened at their lower ends.In the construction which we prefer the ribs arevbent on arcs ofcircles, increasing in size from front to rear, so that the resultantsurface is substantially cone-shaped. "To the outer ends of the ribs andto the forward end of the keel, longitudinal. strips 3, are attached. Atthe rear extremity of the surface formed by covering the framework 'justdescribed with any suitable material, two floating ribs 4 are attached.The floating ribs 4., are fastened at their outer ends to longitudinalstrips 3, while at their inner end they are fastened together andpivoted to the bell-crank..5, by. piv0t'6. The lower cnd'o'f the hellcrank 5, is pivoted by 'pin 7 to the rear end of connecting" rod 8, awhich at its forward end is pivoted to lever 9. One end of lever 9 ispivoted to the keel 1 whilethe other end is formed into a handle 10. Theframe composed of ribsB and 4, longitudinal pieces 3 and keel 1 iscovered with any suitable material as for instance canvas, tightlystretched in place. Two similacsections of a conical surface are thusformed, the sections being joined together along an element at the keel.i he two parts of this supporting surface are held in their relativepositions by spacing. means 11 and 12 which are fastened to ribs 2 and 4at their highestpoints. A'seat 13, is fastened to the heel for theconvenienceof the operator. v

A rudder for steering the flying machine in a horizontal plane is shownat 14:, p1voted on pins 15, the said pins being held on rods 16 and 17which are fastened respec-- tively to the keel and to the spacing strut12. The axis of the rudder-is situatedin the vertical plane through thecenter of the keel.

. angle though for .obvious reasons we do not the operator.

limit ourselves to this angle. The rudder bar 18 is fastened at rightangles to the plane of the rudder through its forward edge. Rudder-ropes19, are fastened to the rudder bar 18" and pass through rings 20 tohorizontal lever 21 to which the ropes are fastened by rings 22. p Thelever 21 is pivoted to the keel at 23. The end of lever 21 is formedinto a handle'at the end adjacent to bearings 24% is a rod 25 carrying arocker 26 and a lever 27. Cords 27 are connected from the longitudinalstrips 3 at points adjacent to the ribs 2 to the rocker arm and firmlyfastened to the center of the rocker. From the above description-of thesupporting surface, together with the drawings,

it is clearthat the cutting edges of said surface, or the edges whichfirst cleave the air, extend diagonally from front torear, substantiallythe len th ofthe machine. Now.

it is a well established fact that the greater part of the lifting powerof any surface which moves relatively to, the air is concentrated withina short distance from the cutting edge. It is further well known thatfor difi'crent angles of inclination and for different speeds with thesame inclination the position of the resultant upward pres- .sure isvery diii'erenh. An approximate rule is that as the angle of inclinationvaries from 90 degrees or a position perpendicular to the direction offlight) to 0 degrees (or a position parallel to the direction offlight)the center of upward pressure,varies from the geometrical center of thesurface to the forward or cutting edge. A similar shifting.

takes place as the relative speed of the air and the surface is varied.It is understood that the above shiftin of the benter'of pressure takesplace chie y in surfaces, the cutting edge of which is substantiallyperpendicular to the direction of motion. It is also common knowledgethat the above described phenomena of the shifting of the center ofupward-pressure is due to the fact that the cutting edge suppliesalarger and larger part (if the total lifting power as the speedincreases and as the angle of inclination decreases.

As a result of the shifting of the center of Supported belowthe keel byupward pressure all flying machines employing surfaces in which thecutting edge is substantially perpendicular to the direction of flight,experience a continual tendency to dive upward or downward as thechanges of equilibrium require the constant attention of theoperator to.overcome them. If, however, the cutting'edge extends substantially theentire length of the surface from front to rear, any increase ordecrease in the lifting force at the cutting edge will porting surfacewith the-result that the cen-v ter of pressure will be substantiallyunchanged in position. equipped with a supporting surface of thetudinally "or about ahorizontal transverse axis. 1:

' Turning now to Fig; 4 and considering surface it will be seen thatthere are two -to its normal position when displaced for any reason. Thefirst cause isdue to the fact that as the machine tilts over, as forexample toward the left side, the projected area of the left side upon ahorizontal plane increases while the projected area of the right sidedecreases. Since the supporting power of any surface is proportional tothe the upward, force on the left side increases while that ofthe rightside decreases with the .resultthat the flying machine will tend toright itself. The second cause which contributes to automatic stabilityis due to the the center of downward pressure due' to the weight, isshifted to the other side, thereby creating a couple tending to rightthe machine. It therefore follows that a flying machine equipped with asupporting surface of the type here described 18 in a condition ofstable equilibrium both transversely and longitudinally. I As an auxiiary means of re aining transverse equilibrium we provide t e means con?sisting of rod 25, rocker 26 rigidly fixed thereto, and flexibleconnections. 27* which are fastened tothe rocker and to the supportingsurface at the rearward end of strips 3. By turning down lever 27 asshown in the dotted lines in Fig. at one side of the supporting surfaceis pulled down while the other side is allowed to move upward, therebyaccomplishing the face about a longitudinal axis, namely decreasing theroyected area on the side which has turned ewnward, and increasing theupward, thus producing a couple which acts to restore the machine to itsnormal position.

- speed or angle of inclination changes. Such be distributed the entirelength of the sup-- the transverse stability of the supporting fact thatas the surface tilts toward one side,

same end as the bodily rotation of the sur-" projected area. on the/sidewhich has rotated The machine when character described'is thereforestable longicauses which operate: to return the machine projected area,other conditions being equal,

usages In order to direct the machine in a vertiearl plane, and as anauxiliary means of maintaining longitudinal stability wehave providedthe means shown in Figs. 1 and 4.

The said means consists of two floating ribs et, at the rear extremityof the-supporting surface, the said ribs being fastened together attheir inner and lower ends, and pivoted at this point to the bell crank5 which is connectedby rod 8 to lever 9. .If lever 9 be moved into theposition shown in the dotted lines in Fig. 2 the bell crank will berotated as shown, and the rear end of the supporting surface will bedepressed into the position shown by the dotted lines. We preier todepend upon the flexibility of the .material forming the framework ofour 1113.-

' chine to allow this deflection, though hinges or any, suitable pivotsmay be used. The deflection of the rear end of the supporting surfaceincreases the pressure of the air upon this portion, thus shiftingthecenter of upward pressure backward with the result that the machine willbe directed downward. A movement of the lever in a reverse directionwill cause the rear margin of the supporting surface to be raised, withthe re-. sult that the center of upward pressure will be shifted forwardthus causing the machine to be directed upward. It is obvious that themeans of directing the machine in a vertical plane may be used as anauxiliary means of maintaining equilibrium.

Coming next to the means-for directing the flying machine in ahorizontal plane,

we have found that there 'are two forces.

which act to tend to over-turn a machine which is turning about avertical axis. The

first is the centrifugal force due to the mass of the machine. Since thecenter of mass is below the center ofupward pressure, the

- centrifugal force produced when the meto the vertical rudder providesmeans for so chine-turns about a vertical axis will act to throw theweight outward, thus'depressmg the side of the supporting surface,toward which the machine is-turning. A slight movement in this directionis advantageous as it prevents the machine fromslidmg s1dewise throughthe air. There is a second force which is caused by the backward travelof the center-of upward pressure as the machine turns. This force act-sto depress the forward end of the machine causing it to tend to diveforward. a

The partof our invention which relates designing the rudder that theforces upon it are sufficient in magnitude and in the proper directionto overcome the forces which tud to defray the equlllbriuin of theflying machine. Onesrrangement which accomplishes these ends is shown inFigs. 1,2, and 3. This consists of a rudder 14; which maybe mostsatisfactorily formed by stretching any suitable covering over a framework of the shape shown. Ye have found it preferable to pivot the rudderon an ax s passin g through its front edge though I this IS not.necessary. As shown in the drawlogs the rudder is pivoted by p ns 15 onan axis inclined abopt 45 degrees, the said axis ;sloping from the lowerand'forwa-rd edge ,upward and rearwardly to the upper and back edge. Across-bar is connected to. the :forwai'd edge ofthe rudder and to wires19 .which pass through rings 20 to lever 21; 5 Thus when lever 21 ismoved to the position shown in thedottedlines in Figs 2 and 3, therudder is rotated as shown in the dotted T'lines. It will be noted thatthe center of pressure of the rudder is above the center jof weight ofthe flying machine. Asa re- ,s-ult, when the rudder is turned about. its

; inclined axis its surface will deflect currents Q of air upwardandbaclrward-and will thus 5 By making the surfacd'of the ruddersuificien'tly large the downward force will have a sufficient value toautomatically overcome the tendency of the machine to dive forwardsharpness of the turn, and consequently the tendency to dive increases,the effective angle jcally correcting .the diving tendency and henceautomatically maintaining equilibrinm. The tendency to overturn due tothe centrifugal force exerted-by the mass of the the side thrust of theair on the rudder due frudder is turned. From an inspection of the"figures itwill readily be seen that the side thrust ofthe air isexerted on the side ofthe rudder toward which the machine is turning.Since this side thrust is in the same direciii-g description that thereare a number of differently shaped surfaces which may have thecl'iaracteristics enumerated, and which will therefore possess automaticstability both about. a central longitudinal axis and also about atransverse axis which is horizontal, and we do not desire to beunderstood to limit ourselves to any particular detail of construction.

The features which we have discovered to necessary for automaticstabilitgy central longitudinal axis are as ollows:- 1. At least onevertical surface or ltccl extending from front to rear of the machine,

anu symmetrically located. 2. much a disposition of weight andsupporting surface that the center of weight of the machine is onturning. It will also be noted that as the flying machine in turning iscounteracted by ytoitiieisideward deflection f the air when the It willnow be evident from the foregofhave a downwarol force upon itSsurface.

of inclinatiori also increases, thus uutomatition as the centrifugalforce butabove-the' machines.

v esense below the center of upward force of the supporting surface. Thefeature which we have discovered to be necessary for securing automaticstability about a transverse, horizontal axis is a supporting surfacethe cutting edge of which extends from 'front to rear either bysubdividing the surface into a number of planes placed one behind theother, by a cutting edge which extends diagonally from front to rear, orsome equivalent. It is a supporting surface combining thesecharacteristics which we desire to claim and we do not wish to beunderstood as limiting ourselves to the exact construction described, asthis is merely the form which We have found successful with relativelysmall Having now described the features of our invention we make thefollowing. claims. We do not wish to be understood to limit ourselves tothe exact details shown as it is obvious that many modifications can bemade therefrom, and still come within the scope of our invention. 7We donot limit ourselves to curved surfaces, though from structural reasonsthey are much simpler to build than plane-surfaces. W'e include underthe term ,c nical'surface and substantially conical surface as used inthe following claims and in the specification,.

those surfaces which are composed of several individual elements orsurfaces so combined that the lines of intersection of the componentadjacent elements with each other, or these lines of intersectioncontinued, converge toward the forward part of the machine. In thelimiting case when the indiofa pyramidal wedge.

' vidual surfaces are made numerous enough this structure becomes a conebut we desire to include also the surface of a pyramidand It is ofcourse understood that the lines of intersection or these linescontinued do not necessarily converge to a mathematical point, as aconsidei-able variation is allowable and still secure the results of ourinvention. By the term element as used in the following claims we referto a line situated in the lifting surface and extending from the frontto-the 'rear of said surface. In case a strictly conical surface wereemployed it would be the line which would generate the surfacemathematically, though for obvious reasons we do not desire to confineourselves to-the single case of the mathematical element.

By supporting surfaces we refer to that surface of the flying machinewhich by reason of its reaction with the air sustains the weight of themachine. By the term cutting edge we'refer to the edge of the supportingsurface which initially enters the air.

Having now fully described our invention,

whatwe claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is-- 1. In aflying machine, the combination of a compound supporting surface,composed of symmetrical, substantially conical surfaces, concavedownward and joined along an element, the outer or cuttin edges of saidsupporting surfaces being dlsposed below the central elements of saidsurfaces, and a rudder for directing the course of the machine,.theaxisgf said rudder being dis posed in a vertical plane and inclined fromfront to rear.

2. In a flying machine a compound surface composed of symmetrical,substantially conical surfaces, concave downward and disposed side byside, the said surfaces converging toward the forward part of themachine.

3. In a flying machine a compoundsupporting surface, composed ofsymmetrical, conical surfaces, concave downward, and joined alongmarielement, the outer or cut? ting edges of said conical surfaces beingdisposed below the central elements of said surfaces. I

4. .In a flying machine a supporting surface havingsubstantially theshape of the surface of a segment of a cone, the apex of the cone beingin the direction of the forward partof the surface.

5. In a flying machine, an automatically stable supportingsurfacecomposed of two syn'unetrical portions of substantially conical surfacessaid surfaces being concave downward and disposed side by side, theinner edges of said surfaces being continued to form a vertical portionor keel extending longitudinally. the length of the machine.

In testimony .whereof, we have signed our names to this specification inthe presence of two subscribing witnesses, this eleventh day of February1910.

ULYSSES GRANT LEE. WILLIAM AUSTIN DARRAI'I. Witnesses: I

Fnnnmnnn LEE, ADAH HARDY.

Copies 0! this patent may be obtained. for five cents each, byaddressing the Commissioner pt Patents, Washington, I). C.

